The Legacy of Zim
by FlameDragonofDoom
Summary: TLoZ resolves plot threads of Zim. Sticks to canon. No romance. OCs, but the plot is physically impossible to carry out without them. Divided into past, present and future sections relative to the show's time period. T to be safe.
1. The Story of Axel chapter 1

_*Axel, distant future*_

It was thousands of revolutions ago.

I had been thinking about things, as so many of us took for granted. Of us Irkens, how many were truly happy? I remember having had school, and of the weeks past this particular memory, I had kept a track of all my fellow Irkens. Most moved on through the day as a mindless automaton, lacking emotion and rarely speaking. Had I been the only one to realize this? And why had it taken that long to realize I had a quality they lacked?

I remember deciding I had to make sure that it wasn't merely the school environment. I had ventured out onto the streets, unnoticed by my parents, whom had the same unemotional premise. I had walked over to my friend's place- he went to a different school, so I usually didn't see much of him. His name was Eixubar.

Knocking first, I had entered Eixubar's home. Cautiously, as par my nature, I opened his door and looked in. He seemed very deep in thought- quite contrary to what Irkens I had seen on a day-to-day basis, and the sight of him had renewed my faith in our friendship.

It had. "Had" was a key word… It was bittersweet indeed to reminisce upon these feelings now. I forced myself to look back, though painful it was to remember what I had been, rather than what I am.

I had inquired of him, in the fairly childish manner of the Irken with a mere seven revolutions of age, "What's the matter, Eixubar?"

In response, the equally young Irken said, "I've been thinking- rather odd in retrospect, because it is a rather alien thing for Irkens to think of anything they don't have to, isn't it?"

"I had that on my mind as well! I wonder why we realize these things; I've never seen another Irken wonder about any sort of mystery, besides you of course!" I had chirped.

"An interesting thing. How could we let them see? Do you think we can, Axel? Could just the two of us open the world's eyes?"

Rather hesitantly, I had responded, "I don't know about you, but I'm all for trying! I'd prefer to be alone while thinking, is that okay with you?"

He had thought nothing of it then. I'm sure if he could fix the past he'd never let me leave until I no longer remembered our conversation.

I admit I am not happy with myself; even now on occasion deep twinges of ravenous guilt open up the fringes of my heart and crush them into microscopic shards. And the pain hurts. It really does. Every bitter memory I find, my guilt grows deeper and I predict eventually it will tear me apart from the inside. Every flaw I ever had…they come together as one. They forever, until the end of time and space themselves, will rip into the fabric of my being until I can no longer stand it. By that time…there will be nothing I can do.

And nothing could save me. I am doomed to last for eternity, with nothing to help me through. The bitter words I had spoken at fourteen came back to me, though I shall never say them myself. I refuse to write of my fourteen-revolutions-old self. Rather, I will simply reprint the raw journal I had kept. I will tell you, however, that it had to do with my love of technology.

At as young as four revolutions, I had loved technology. Even now you could say that I do; though in my present state I can no longer design and build it. At seven revolutions I had created a power generator, though I don't ever remember using it for anything. It was at seven that I had come up with the inevitable concept that changed everything.

"What if technology could be integral to the Irken way of life?"

I know that it was meant to carry the point, "What if Irkens could learn to make technology work for them?" But by the time I turned fourteen, the thought had been warped by my then-insane mind into the abomination that forever changed the entire world. It truly hurts to restate the work of insanity I had once entirely believed to be moral; but as I must do, I will anyway… It carried the notion of "What if I could use technology to change the way the Irken mindset worked?"

To be fair to my younger self, that was exactly what I was aiming for- a way to change the Irkens' mind from a depressed mind to a livelier mind. However, the biting agony that I find upon my actions today cannot possibly be relinquished over a single understanding of my past. No longer can I write. I leave you to read the scrawls of my fourteen-revolutions-old self alone. I had also found the writings of Eixubar, which stings me more to know he did not deserve what he got. Please, before you think lowly of me, remember that I am not afraid to say I was completely insane at fourteen. Being the only Irken not depressed and apathetic constantly did very much wear on my nerves. And at that final point, slowly I changed from the only sane Irken into the least sane one…


	2. The Story of Axel chapter 2

_*Axel, at fourteen*_

It had taken far too long to design the incredible new work of genius that I named the PAK. I must have been perfecting its design for seven revolutions now! It had a very nice, sleek half-sphere shape, or rather like half of a 3D oval. It was my greatest work yet. I had equipped it with lots of technology, such as the spider-legs feature. I didn't really bother to test the PAK before turning it on. But that part didn't really matter, as it did exactly as expected. It latched on to my back and dug twin cables on either side of my spine. I felt it lightly hum with power, as my personality and mind threaded through it.

I was sure that my prototype was exactly as good as I would ever need the PAKs to be. I began making more PAKs. Each one, desperate for a host, tore through the wall and searched for civilians.

Satisfied with my work, I stood. I looked out upon the Irkens below, and as my house was on a slight elevation, I could see quite a distance either direction, but in clear focus. I could see that several Irkens had PAKs attached, and those that did seemed to be bouncing with energy. They had developed personalities; exactly as was expected.

But I was not satisfied entirely. I needed everyone to be changed; not a mere few. With my PAK attached to me, I felt without fear. I would destroy the Irkens' current way of life, but all for the greater good.


	3. The Story of Axel chapter 3

_*Eixubar, at fourteen*_

I had noticed my friend's deterioration over the past few days. It seemed only I knew it was due to that vile PAK. Having gone around the city, I had noticed that most of the Irkens had a PAK attached- it made them moody, irritable, destruction-loving things. It did bring out the personality that had been gone for many eons amongst us- which, as a direct result, brought out the violent tendencies of us as we were far back in evolution, as creatures who hunted for food. Our violent, dominant nature was threaded through the PAK, and it brought out the worst in us.

Why had Axel done this in the first place? I could understand his inner evil escaping after the PAK had latched onto him. But…why would he do such a thing? I had known him all my life… but I asked myself: Did I really know? I didn't get to see him often- yet, I was sure that seven revolutions ago I had known him well. Slowly, however, he had become more and more distant from me. He once had had a mysterious air about him, and a stare that seemed to pierce into the depths of your soul. However… now these qualities were much different. Rather than a deep, complex stare, he wielded a half-insane one. He was more violent and erratic, even before the PAK ordeal.

I suddenly remembered the Irken collective- with that vile piece of machinery adhered to their backs. I wondered if it could be removed safely, and decided to try. I, cautious as always, stepped outside. The sun was setting and it was vibrant to the point of stunning proportions. If I wanted light to take this experiment by, I'd have to hurry, because the brilliant gold was slipping away rapidly.

Hastily, I ran over to the nearest Irken-or rather, sneaked up to it quickly, because I knew he would beat me up if he saw me…simply the way Irkens worked with a PAK. As swiftly as I could, I yanked the PAK off of the civilian's back. It held a vicious grip on the Irken, but I persevered, and I successfully managed to knock it to the ground. It started to rise up, wanting to latch onto a back, but I pressed my foot onto the machine until it stopped struggling. I noticed the effects that it had on the Irken- he seemed lost for a minute, but then shifted back into the typical Irken behavior; though, you couldn't really call it behavior, as they acted like a cheap robot.

Seeing that the PAK appeared to have no short-term harm to the civilian, I realized that in theory I could go remove them all. But the problem with that was Axel- he would never stop making the abominations that were the PAKs. I'd have to confront Axel with only my inferior wits to guide me.

Tentatively, I walked across the hard pavement, the cool night air whirling around me. My surroundings felt ominous and danger-inducing. To face up to my childhood friend, even with peaceful intentions, was a hard thing to digest. If I couldn't stop him… the world of Irk was in imminent danger. To make things worse, when I got to what I remembered as his house, I could see it no longer fit that description. "Laboratory" was a better word. Not bothering to knock first, I walked down Axel's empty, spacious halls. I took my time getting to him. I did not wish to fight.

With a sense of impending doom, I slowly opened Axel's door to his room. Axel's eyes, fierce like a raptor's eyes, fixated on me and he glared intensely. Though frightened, I brought up the will to speak.

"Why have you done this, Axel?"

Still staring at me, he responded, but for the first time I noticed his voice was hollow, metallic; telepathic. That was the word.

"Why have you intruded upon me? Do you doubt me, Eixubar?" he replied evenly.

"You don't understand- you're turning our species in into cold-blooded killers!" I snapped back, flustered.

"Ah; yes; but I have forever cured them of the much worse apathy. Apathy is to be despised."

"Apathy? You take our species and set them back hundreds of years to cure them of **apathy!**"

"Set back? I assure you, I have not set them back. Technology shall soon be highly prevalent in the Irken lifestyle," Axel responded, maddeningly calmly.

"Technology that drives them berserk with rage?"

"With this technology we can travel the stars," spoke Axel. Then, rather sarcastically, he said, "I am certain that is quite advanced."

"What happens when we get there?" I countered. "We'll destroy the other species we find? Irkens aren't killers; we don't deserve this fate!"

As calmly as he always spoke, he lightly said, "I have cured them of their chronic apathy and depression. What more do you want?"

"Axel! You want to be the reason our species is despised by every living creature who meets us?"

Axel still stared hard, this time with a hint of guilt and remorse buried in his eyes. I thought it was because of his past actions.

But I was wrong.

I felt something leech into my back, and the world went black.


	4. The Story of Axel chapter 4

*Axel*

I glanced down at Eixubar. Really, it was pathetic. Eixubar, doubt my methods? I didn't know what came over him. How could he not see? The benefits so outweighed the risks, yet Eixubar glanced over the meaning of it all. Yet, he did make a good point. Was what I was doing right? Moral? I shrugged that thought off. I had no reason to doubt myself. None at all. In truth, the fact that I had doubted myself due to the words of my childhood acquaintance just made it more likely that my reasoning was correct. After all, friends made in childhood don't last forever.

With those thoughts in my head, I ignored Eixubar, as really what was there to gain by removing his new PAK? I found it an excellent way to get him quiet, and maybe it would make him agree with me. I left him to awaken on his own, and walked back to my work station.

I realized that there were quite a few things wrong with my prototype PAK design, contrary to my first thoughts about it. The fierce AI would have to be removed once they were mass-produced. For now, I would keep it in so the PAKs would simply latch on with no input from me. It would make my job so much easier if they could do some of the work for me.

I wasn't making very good time on the PAKs, though. Since I was only Irken, and Irkens aren't perfect. It came to me that I should use machines to make the PAKs along with myself. I set the half-finished PAK aside, and started work on a robot.

I had to make it fairly irkenoid, rather than a machine that was specifically designed for one task. Well, I didn't have to, but I chose to in case I wanted other tasks done by it. I carefully drew the blueprints for the robot. I wanted a rectangular body, with a pocket on the front for holding small materials; a tall bowl-shaped head, mostly hollow, so it could store more materials in there; I didn't really want to give the robot joints, because they would require constant oiling, so I decided to make them hover off the body and made of a flexible substance so they could still bend. The arms should be able to bend freely in any direction, so I designed them to be so. Its eyes would be LED screens, though strong ones, to avoid easy damage to them.

After I made the blueprints, it was quick work building the robot. I needed a name for the type of robot it was. Now, I refused to give it a specific name. If I did that I'd get attached to it, and anything you are attached to will inevitably fail one day. One day it will rust and die, though none of the other Irkens ever saw it that way. They see to the present. They think being in love is a simple matter; they never ask what will happen after the person dies. Then they will lose the will to live, and in turn, die themselves. I've always seen getting attached to something as a practice to avoid.

In fact, I could only think of one person I had. Eixubar. Though it really didn't take much for me to shrug off the attachment and do just what he deserved. That was important- to never get too attached to anything, ever. That had been my unspoken motto for as long as I could remember.

To avoid any possibility that I would get attached to the robot, I wouldn't name it anything. I would, however, have to give it a kind of name for the type of robot it was. I decided on an acronym to make it even less of a name- SIR, short for Standard Issue Reconstruction. Reconstruction came from its ability to build things, or reconstruct, and I found 'SIR' a better name than 'SIC' for 'construction'.

Several hours later, I had built a large number of robot SIRs, and each of them were working on the PAKs I had. At that point, the SIRs and I had made about 200,000 PAKs. I estimated the amount of Irkens without PAKs to be about one billion. I was making impressive time. Pacing calmly around the lab as my SIR units continued work, I thought long and hard. At some point, I'd have to make myself ruler of this planet. I could think more about that after the Irkens had PAKs. For now, I would write down my ideas on the matter.

Having settled that, I stepped out of my lab, back to my room- I wanted to look over some ideas for the mass-produced PAK. Though, I noticed Eixubar still lay there. I didn't feel like stepping over his body all the time, whether alive or dead, so I unceremoniously carried him outside and dumped him on the dirt beside my impressive house. He looked very small and weak beside it. I didn't really care.

Since I was outside anyway, I looked out upon the landscape below. I saw a few Irkens- rather than walking around dully they were lively and rambunctious. I saw two Irkens fighting on the street.

My eyes slowly but excitedly tracked the sidewalk down on either side. I noticed several houses that were vacated, despite having been occupied just a few days prior. Slightly concerned, I stepped across the mostly vacant road up to the nearest empty home. I knocked patiently once…twice…thrice… then turned the knob hesitantly and stepped inside.

There were no Irkens inside at first glance, but as I walked into their kitchen, I noticed two Irkens frozen in rigor mortis. They had clearly been shredded apart. Both had struggle marks all over themselves. What had happened to them? I uncertainly walked to the living room and noticed another heavily bloodied Irken. This one appeared to be alive, but unconscious. This one's PAK was missing.

At that point, the Irken stirred to consciousness. It looked dull and automatic, as the Irkens always were before PAKs, though it was more so due to blood loss. Its missing PAK burst out from under the cracked floor and latched violently onto the Irken's back. After a slight pause, during which I backed away, the Irken's PAK lurched to life and the Irken flew at me like a rabid weasel. I had never been good at running, though I forced myself to- it wasn't long before the fight-happy Irken wrestled me to the ground and tore at me until I lost consciousness.


	5. The Story of Axel Chapter 5

_*_Eixubar_*_

I was unconscious.

No. That was not entirely true. In the deepest crevices of my mind, I knew to stay knocked out. If I awoke, who knows how the PAK could affect me?

I could not stay unconscious forever. I could feel my mind surfacing, and in a desperate attempt to stay asleep I forced it away. Though it was some time, I couldn't prevent the inevitable. My eyes snapped open.

The first things I noticed were two sharp pains in my back- though that was to be expected. I then felt the PAK hum as it absorbed what was, in essence, myself. Memories left me and for a minute, I could not remember my identity. When the PAK finished downloading my mind, the memories returned.

How can I describe what it was like to be controlled by the prototype PAK? It was a peculiar thing. The PAK's interpretation of your mind conflicted with your true one. The way the PAK saw your mind was less than pleasant… thanks to it, I felt that the only way I could get my energy out was through violence.

My will was strong, and I fought the primitive instincts the PAK brought up- though it was no easy task. The PAK simply made my mind conflicted with so many clashing feelings, that my mind was spiraling away.

My mind was breaking into chunks. The thoughts in my head were insane and incomplete. I could formulate no plan to get this PAK off. It refused to. For no reason other than the PAK's wild impulse, I sped off to Axel's subdivision.

My brain was dizzy-so dizzy that I forgot Axel caused this mess in the first place. My PAK mind misinterpreted our childhood friendship as somewhere to run off to. I heard shouts and smelled blood from a few houses down. The scent spurred me on. I drifted over to the house that the scent was emanating from. Somewhere deep inside me, my true mind fought a battle with the PAK mind. But it soon became apparent that my true mind was in control no longer. The PAK mind… had won.

Like the frenzy of sharks, I followed the powerful urge. Towards the scent. The scent of blood meant a fight, and I was eager to join in. But there was an annoying sound in my head. It meant something. I ignored it. The smell, that was more important. It meant a fight. It meant a fight! All I could think about. The smell of the hunt. It was all I could hear, all that echoed in my head. The smell of the hunt. The smell of the hunt…

Silently, the voice I somewhere knew was mine cried out. It sounded like small noise to me. An annoyance. I pursued the scent. The scent mattered. The scent!

I opened the door carelessly. All I could focus on. All I could focus on- I smelled a live creature! And the scent of death reeked its delicious reek. The scent of the hunt. I found the source of live meat! I leapt at it, trying to knock the creature into submission. It was already soaked with battle wounds, which just got to me more. More! More of that scent! I worked hard at getting the creature to give off more of that scent. I was ecstatic. The ecstasy of the hunt. The hunt…the hunt…

The noises. The strange voice in my head. It was loud. It made me uncomfortable. It pressed at me. I tried to ignore it. The smell was more important. The hunt. The ecstasy of the hunt. Think of the hunt. Think… all that mattered. It was all that mattered. Everything. Everything was one with the hunt. All I lived for. All my life. The hunt.

I was still uneasy. The voice kept calling. It was saying my name. My name? What was a name? It didn't matter! All that mattered- the ecstasy of the hunt. The voice. The voice! It repeated a strange word. "Eixubar…remember…remember my name…" No! No! All that mattered. All that mattered. Everything revolved around the glee that was the hunt.

It spoke again. Why? Why were these words in my head? They were vexing me. It spoke to me. "Eixubar! Remember your name! Remember… Remember Axel! That's the PAK speaking to you!"

Axel. That word meant something. Something important. No. No. NO. All that mattered.

"Remember who you were!"

All that mattered-

"The hunt is nothing. You are. Listen: You are Eixubar!"

All that matte-

"No! Don't lose yourself!"

All tha-

"Listen to me! Look within yourself! Remember who you are! Who I am! Remember… Remember the good times! Remember yourself!"

All-

"Remember Axel!"

My eyes snapped open.

I looked in growing horror at my hands, soaked in blood. The Irken- I had killed. I KILLED. And I had enjoyed it. This was what Axel thought a step up? This was a fate worse than death. It simply wasn't natural.

The PAK's mind was still there, and fighting hard, though by keeping the thought of Axel in my head I could fight some of it off. No matter how hard I tried, if I reached around back to yank it off, it would send a surge of truly unbearable pain through me. Axel!

I saw him, lying on the ground, passed out from blood loss. Thankfully, I had visited not too long after the other Irken half-killed Axel, so he wasn't as bad off as he could have been. A lone tear slipped from my eye. I knew only one way to keep him alive. Only one way. That played in my head.

I pulled the PAK off of him, getting my bare hands bloodier in the process. The PAK on my back "saw" an exposed back, and leapt onto Axel's back. It lay dormant, as it would until Axel was revived to consciousness. The next part of my plan was the part I dreaded.

I, in tears by this point, placed Axel's PAK onto my back. I knew, somehow, that some of Axel's memories would be transmitted from him to me. I needed his knowledge of technology.

Axel's mind was no doubt insane. There was no other word for it. The PAK downloaded some of my personality, but it couldn't hold that much- exactly as I had thought it would, it released Axel's data into me, to download mine.

Wow. The technological mind I now had access to! I spent no time on thinking about it. I carried Axel's rapidly dying body as quick as the wind to his laboratory to work. I thanked Irk it wasn't far. I placed his body on the work station and took a huge pile of machinery. Without parts of Axel's mind to guide me, I would have been lost. I installed the technology carefully into him, to preserve his maimed body.

Halfway through, the power went out.


	6. The Story of Axel chapter 6

*Axel*

My mind was drugged. Lazy, asleep. Everything I felt- well, I couldn't truly feel, because my memories were blurry and insignificant, and the present was a giant haze. I knew I had been violently attacked, but nothing else, really. I had felt constant presses and tweaks to my chest, but it hadn't hurt. It was impossible to know what was really going on. To find that out, I'd have to open my eyes. I kept feeling pokes on my chest- I really didn't want to know what they were…

Through my eyelids I could sense that it grew suddenly dark, and the pokes stopped. I heard the shuffle of feet. Even though I wasn't sure it was safe, my curiosity defeated my instincts and I opened my eyes. It was as dark as the deep of night, but I saw small lights out of the corner of my eye. I swiveled my head to look at them, when I realized they were _inside me._

Not quite inside me, but they were right _there. _On my chest, where the annoying pokes had been. And since I had had my chest practically shredded open by that Irken, the lights were essentially inside me.

The lights snapped back on, and the brilliant illumination felt like it seared my eyes. After a pause while my eyes adjusted, I could see what my chest looked like. It no longer was one. Cords and wires twisted and interconnected all making up the shape of a torso. Even though my mind was still slightly hazy, I could see they were arranged not sloppily, but with the careful craftsmanship that only I could accomplish with technology. Not only did they fill up the cavity left, they made my body stronger and cybernetically enhanced. I heard footsteps, and an Irken walked back into the room.

My head was still foggy, so I couldn't recognize the Irken right away. Dazedly I focused on him, and realized to my utter shock that it was Eixubar. He looked at me, concerned, because he saw that I was awake. I laid my head back down and closed my eyes, so I couldn't see him threading more cords through me- though I definitely felt it. I was still tired, so I fell asleep…

By the time I woke up, my body was getting the finishing touches on being completely technologically revamped. My head was clear, and it was then that I realized that there was no way Eixubar could have possibly done this- he didn't know the first thing about technology. How…

As I watched, he swapped the PAKs- he took mine, and I got his. Yet, the PAK on my back then felt familiar. He must have switched our PAKs before to gain technological knowledge! I admired his intelligence. Though, I reminded myself, I had more.

Suddenly, I realized that because Eixubar's PAK had been on me, and he had absorbed _my _talents, I must have absorbed _his_ thoughts as well. And it was true- a nagging feeling inside me that said that what I was doing was wrong. But, rather than it being an outside voice, which I was completely able to ignore, it was inside me and spoke so rationally that I couldn't overlook it. Somewhere, I heard Eixubar say goodbye and leave, but I wasn't focused on it- the conflict was too much to look away from.

I stood up- dimly realizing it was easier than normal- to go to the PAK work station, but Eixubar's voice screamed against it. Every step towards the room, the shrill voice refused to let up, and for the first time, I, Axel, questioned my work. After all, I would have been completely unharmed had the PAK not existed. I settled on a compromise.

I would redesign the PAK in such a way that they would truly help the Irkens, rather than harm them. Though, I had to consider the Irkens with the prototype PAKs. To Eixubar's mind's chagrin, I realized that they would simply kill each other until none were left. I wasn't too happy with that either, but it would have happened regardless. I hoped fervently that there were enough Irkens without PAKs so my plan wouldn't fail.

But, to my horror, my first SIR unit reported to me that _every Irken had been successfully given a PAK._ I had completely forgotten that the SIRs had been working on them in my absence. My eyes widened with growing worry as I realized there was only one way to get out of this. It wouldn't be easy, either.

I called Eixubar up on a fairly new video hologram device, and told him to return to my lab as fast as he could.


	7. The Story of Axel chapter 7

*Eixubar*

I was patiently thinking in my home, contemplating whether it was truly a good idea to rescue Axel. I, after much thinking, decided that it was, because now that I had saved him he might listen to my cries of freedom.

Suddenly, to my shock, I saw a green glowing hologram of Axel materialize beside me. His holographic self seemed very shaken and flustered. With a note of urgency underlying his flat, metallic hologram voice, he told me to return to his laboratory- and quickly. I inquired why, to which he simply responded that it concerned the PAKs. I realized the note of stress in his voice was entirely justified, and darted over to his lab. Stepping inside, Axel 'greeted' me with an even stare, and said just as levelly, "I have settled on a moral compromise regarding the PAKs. Rather than have them tweak their mind for the worse, I will make it a symbiotic relationship where both find dependency on the other. However…" His voice trailed off, visibly hurt. Struggling to pick up the sentence, he continued, "However, the PAKs that are currently attached to the Irkens' backs… cannot be reprogrammed. The Irkens are condemned to destroy themselves…"

I held back tears, lowering my head. "I warned you…I told you what terrors those PAKs were… I warned you…" I said, soft, quiet, hurt. His eyes, still fierce, but somewhat softened by the guilt he now possessed, looked straight at me, and he whispered, "I am sorry."

He put every ounce of compassion he had into those words.

My voice, now high pitched with an edge of panic, "How can we possibly worm our ways out of this hideous predicament?" Though I said it strongly, I was incredibly saddened inside.

His eyes flattened at the thought, but he responded with fake confidence, "The only way is through technology. _The only way._

"The lone approach to save the Irkens would be to artificially create them. We would have to take gene pools from Irkens and use them to create the backup race. Nonetheless, cloning of any kind is incredibly risky and has many drawbacks. In fact, the PAK would be the only thing keeping them alive. It might have other unwanted side effects as well.

"I have written up some very basic blueprints for the gene device. But, obviously, to have this thing work, we need genes. The actual process of extracting the gene pool from the person shouldn't be difficult- the trouble will be to get the gene suppliers to comply. We could both give our genes, but from only two gene pools the Irken race would be pathetically dull. Since I am crafting the machine and doing most all the technical work, I send you to get the specimens."

I sensed just the tiniest sliver of doubt and hesitancy riding smoothly, sneakily woven underneath the confident exterior tone of Axel's voice. He wasn't sure of his request? That fact and another, more prominent one made me hesitate. The Irkens were not keen on getting kidnapped, and that was such an understatement that it wasn't funny. He handed me a tranquilizer dart gun, and I stepped outside.

To my complete and utter shock, as soon as my foot touched the outside ground, clouds moved over the sun and the day blurred into the sky. It turned dark- almost as dark as night. My antennae detected the faintest hint of fog in the air.

It was the most ominous day I had ever seen.

Before my departure, Axel had warned me that the sedative gun was not as fast-acting as most people believe them to be- though their range is incredible. I thought to myself that a tranquilizer was not a very good weapon against the magnitude of sheer horror that was wrapped in those little PAKs.

Regardless, I lifted the tranquilizer gun up to my face and looked though the aiming mechanism. It _did _have a surprising range. I spotted an Irken from a long way off, and I wondered if the gun could fire that far away. The Irken was running towards me besides, so I fired with as careful aim as I could possibly manage. The dart flew straight and true, and it struck the Irken in the forehead. It seemed to have no effect on him at first, but as I watched, the Irken ran slower and more clumsily until he collapsed.

I sprinted over to the Irken's limp body, carrying him over to Axel's lab for gene contribution. I had realized that the best thing to do was bring in each Irken separately, and as soon as it was shot to lessen the chances of its awakening in the meantime. By the time I got to Axel's house, he had constructed several holding tanks, and was finished with the gene contraction machine, but not the Irken spawn machine. He placed his hand on a sensor pad which made one of the holding tanks open, in which I placed the knocked-out Irken. I started to walk back outside to snag more Irkens, but before I could, Axel said, "We need at least ten more Irkens, not counting ourselves." Keeping that in mind, I stepped outside.

I successfully managed to sedate nine more Irkens- one of which was a girl- and I only needed one more. One more…one more… as if listening to my thoughts, the sky grew darker. Fog settled in completely. I was truly scared. Through the corner of my eye, I saw movement. Another Irken! I raised the gun up to fire. Right when it would be the perfect angle, the perfect trajectory, I pulled the trigger.

Though it made the loud boom, the dart did not fire.

The Irken heard the noise, and immediately shot like an arrow towards the direction he had heard it, desperate to get to me, to get to the scent.

I panicked. I tried to no avail to get the gun to shoot. I had forgotten to ask Axel to give me more ammunition beforehand.

What a stupid mistake.

The Irken was only a few yards away. I raised the gun over my head, ready to use it like a hammer. With malice in its eyes, the Irken leapt. I hit it hard over the head, but it was so scent-crazed that it did nothing. All the Irken's weight crashed down on my skull, and for the second time that week, the world went black.

_I never saw daylight again._


	8. The Story of Axel chapter 8

*Axel*

Something was wrong.

I could tell.

Something was very wrong.

I didn't know what. I just had a nagging feeling- the feeling that you forgot something. Eixubar had stepped outside for the eleventh Irken just a second ago. I didn't know why worry ate at me; I just knew something was wrong. My eyes nervously tracked the room, searching, scanning. What had I forgotten? I saw nothing. Yet the feeling of apprehension was so great that there had to have been something I overlooked. I repeated the seeking of anything, _anything I could find _that was amiss. There was nothing I could see. Though nervous and uncertain, I continued to construct the Irken spawn machine.

It must have been no more than twenty minutes, yet it felt like an eternity later when I heard a loud 'bang'. I had heard ten others just like it; it was the sound of the tranquilizer gun going off. Yet when I heard it, I knew my premonition was correct. Something _was _wrong. The gun could only hold ten darts at a time- I had forgotten to reload it. My eyes locked onto a lone dart near a holding tank, lying on its side. That dart. It would haunt my soul forever.

I wasted no time. Realizing that the tranquilizer dart might be useful, I took it in hand and sped outside as fast as my legs could carry me. It was incredibly foggy outside, and eerily silent.

I scanned the shroud of fog for any signs of a fight. But it was useless. By the time I found Eixubar, I saw he was stiff as a board. He must have been attacked by an Irken, but amazingly his body had only three slash marks down his forehead. His eyes stared ahead, glassy, cloudy. They were like marbles in his head, perfectly round, simply staring. Not tracking movements. They were just opened wide and glazed over. Leaning in, I heard not a breath, and felt neither heartbeat nor pulse. For the first time in my life, I bowed my head and wept.

I was clouded with emotion. In incredible frustration and sorrow, I threw the dart down and fled, tears still streaming from my eyes. The dart was stuck in the ground beside him, forgotten. I wanted to forget it, leave everything behind. I became delirious with feelings. The feelings of my true self weren't there. My true self could care less. But some of Eixubar's soul got encoded into me when he switched our PAKs. His Irken sense of self, that moral compass he seemed to possess, it gave me feelings again. I wasn't used to feelings. I tried my best to shun the feelings, to get them away, so that I could focus on what I needed to do.

Driven by a biting emptiness, a cold rock in my heart caused by nothing other than guilt, I- though acting more like a machine than an Irken being- worked on the enormous machine that would easily repopulate Irk. By the time I finished it, every Irken on Irk was dead except for me and the ten test subjects. The Irkens had killed each other, so I felt no grief for them. Though Eixubar's soul still nagged at me, I could shut it off fairly well. Not perfectly, but I could channel most of it apart from me.

The ten Irkens that were test subjects were only kept alive because in the event that the Irken spawn machine failed, they could still give DNA. Regardless, I wouldn't kill them- they would kill themselves; I could tell they were itching to.

It was in lonely, secluded, unwanted silence in which I finished the machine, and I had made it to last nearly forever- it was built into my lab, after all. I transferred the genes from the collector to the new machine, where they were distributed into hundreds of combinations. The Irken DNA rested in the test tubes, where they would grow into young Irken smeets.

I already knew that the process of artificial life in this way was impossible under normal circumstances. The sweets would have to rely on outside help to survive, and I had already thought of that- the PAKs could serve as a sufficient crutch. I couldn't go around giving every smeet a PAK, so I constructed two robotic arms that would snap each completed test tube and give the youngling a PAK. They would also electrically shock the Irken to jumpstart it.

I couldn't put any care towards the robotic arms. I had no happiness in my soul to give.

Somewhere inside me, I remembered Eixubar. I knew inside that it was my fault he was dead. It was my mistake. My fault. I had doubted sending him alone! Why had I not heeded to my instincts? I finally gave into emotions. I hated myself. I needed to avenge his death somehow. My eyes lit up as I discovered the answer.

Technology that I created took forever to break down. In fact, nothing I had made had shorted out yet! If I combined the natural Irken longevity with my machinery's natural longevity, I could live …forever. I could live out Eixubar's lifetime in addition to my own. I could avenge his death after all.

I worked long and hard engineering a serum to help myself grow into a machine. Slowly, slowly, I could become essentially immortal. I was already partially a machine besides, I thought, glancing down at the intertwined wires that made up my chest.

I thought that ruling Irk would be especially justified now that I could do it for Eixubar. As for how I could rule, I could base importance on height- and I could convince the little ones that height had always been the way of the Irkens by giving them the information through their PAKs. I could download false knowledge into each one via a slender cable- I had decided that I needed some kind of armlike extension as a…what would I call myself? A Control Brain.

I had already thought of the shape I wanted myself to be, so I put every bit of thought into the serum. When I was finally finished, I carefully injected myself…

By the time I had fulfilled completely the role of Control Brain, by the time I was no longer completely Irken, the spawn machine had worked flawlessly and several Irkens were wandering the planet, without much to do. I selected the tallest Irken, and made him the figurehead of the Irken race. I was really in charge, but I hid behind a clever masquerade. Beside me, three other Control Brains stood, though they were entirely machines. Not only did I have the smarts of a machine, I also had the Irken intelligence by my side, so I was truly the leader of them all.

I have decided that since the Irken future seems bright, I do not need to write in this any longer.


	9. The Story of Axel chapter 9

*Axel, distant future*

My eyes burn with pain as I look over these writings. Each one pierces through my heart sharper than any sword ever could. If I could cry I'd be in tears by this point, but upon relinquishing my mortality I had also relinquished my ability to secrete tears. I had, in the distant past, made myself one with technology. I had christened myself the title of Control Brain. At the time, I had needed to hold back my great sadness. Now, I want to show it more than ever. I want to be able to cry, to be able to show my sorrow, as it would help my mind to rest at peace. But I cannot.

I look upon the cracked, dry, destroyed planet, my heart filling with deep remorse. I know that the fate of Irk was entirely my fault. I can't even move around the deserted world well, due to my state as a Control Brain. I try and try to cry. But I know just as well that I can't. Though hope had left my soul many centuries ago, I send a camera bot to scan the planet for life. I look at Irk. The planet clearly can support life no longer, as barren and desolate as it is. I think to the side of me I can see a long-since fossilized Irken skeleton. There is a PAK beside it.

Merely living here is a bitter stab in the heart for me. I cannot look in any direction without seeing some painful reminder of my past. I look up to the sky, though there was none anymore. I see the stars, knowing they have planets of their own. I wonder if anything out there shares a similar fate to mine. I swear I can see one lone planet around a nearby star. I think of whether any inhabitants can see the world I had once known and loved. I wonder. It seems I wonder a lot recently.

I look out upon the earth. Each cracked expanse of land appears weary and long-dead. I know that it is. Irk is no longer a lively planet. It is a dead chunk of frigid rock. I lower my eyes more, and see to my shock a small puddle of water. I have not seen water for eons. It must have come up from the very heart of the planet, as if to tell me something. I look into its clear surface. Despite Irk being a giant dirty rock, the water is clearer than any water I have ever seen. It is pure and level. I look deeply into it, trying to see why it had risen. I see movement from the sky, and a familiar dart sails down and ruptures the water's surface. The water stops rippling, and I stare into its depths.

I think I see the face of Eixubar, buried deeply in the crystalline water. The face, slightly disfigured by three prominent scars, looks up at me with a mix of pity and sorrow.

I blink.

The face is gone.


	10. Author's Note TSoA

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**That was The Legacy of Zim's first chapter, The Story of Axel. The next storyline will be called Night Rebels, about the whole Irkens-are-assigned-ranks-like-Invader plot thread.**

**On a different note (and if you don't really like author's notes, you can skip this whole thing, because it's just a transition between stories), if any of you lack the patience/brain capacity to find all the foreshadowing, etc. in TSoA, then I will say all of it here. Again, this is really just filler, but it is interesting to know what exactly was there.**

**First, in the first chapter it says "…****Eixubar, which stings me more to know he did not deserve what he got."** **That is a hint at chapter seven's events. **

**Also, if it was confusing, Axel turned himself into a Control Brain to rule.**

**But my ultimate fridge brilliance in TSoA? **

**Look very, very carefully at the sentence "We need at least ten more Irkens, not counting ourselves."**

**At that point, Eixubar had already collected one Irken.**

**Axel wanted to include both his and Eixubar's genes.**

**One collected Irken plus two original donors equals three.**

**Three plus ten is thirteen, the "unlucky number".**

**Alternately, you can consider this.**

**Some of Eixubar's DNA runs through Axel, which is the only reason Axel became sane.**

**The Irken gene machine, therefore, has the eleven complete genes (Axel and the ten donors that were collected) and one half-complete set, from Eixubar through Axel.**

**The Irken defects are therefore explained- they received incomplete genetic data. This also might have to do with any morality that they show. **

**In addition, Axel and Eixubar are meaningful names.**

**The name Axel refers to how the axle must always turn the wheel. The axle is useless without the wheel. Eventually, the axle will wear down, and it requires outside help to fix it. Eixubar represents the wheel here.**

**Eixubar's meaningful name comes straight from the term 'exuberant', which is pronounced the same except for the extra syllable. It means to be idealistic, cheery, etc. While Axel couldn't stand the Irkens' depression, Eixubar could see it with no problem, and generally has a positive outlook.**

**Oh, and, the line "I couldn't put any care towards the robotic arms. I had no happiness in my soul to give" explains why, exactly, the robot arms are cold and unfeeling.**

**Expect the first chapter of Night Rebels to be uploaded soon! **


	11. Night Rebels chapter 1

Rune sat on the red and purple tiled floor of an Irken school. Rather than talk to all his 'friends' and laugh and gossip during break like most of the other people, he decided that it was so much more productive to simply think. Devise a plan of sorts, a way around the trap of government every Irken tolerated or didn't think too much about. But Rune wasn't the same as the other Irkens, as you may discover. Rather than take the laws set since three generations ago at face value, Rune puzzled over their morality and, while he sat on this floor, found an answer to solve every issue. It was risky. He was almost certain it wouldn't work. But if he didn't try to fix all of the ridiculous laws, who would? In all of the seventy or so scenarios he'd come up with, death was only the outcome three times. Those were good odds, as far as death went. But in fifty of them, he didn't succeed. His plan even backfired completely in ten. But, if he didn't try, who would? He was one of the very, very rare Irkens who truly thought and considered what was going on. If he didn't try, all of his ideas would be left to rot, and he was almost positive no one would pick up where he left off.

He tried to work through a new scenario every day, writing down the scenario as events entered his mind. One hundred was the magic number at which he'd finally decide to take action and carry out his plan. He turned to a page in his notebook. Page seventy-six. _Only twenty-four more days to go, _he thought.

This plan of his hinged entirely on how many people he could get on board. In between classes, and whenever there was time to finish assignments that he'd already completed (usually within a few minutes), Rune would look at every Irken in sight. Analyze them. Intuitively decide how they would act under such a dangerous mission. Only two seemed of any worth so far, and even then they weren't perfect. One was extremely shy and quiet and might crack under all of the pressure; the other would seem perfect to anyone except Rune. Rune had predicted thirty to forty scenarios in which Thal was the weak link that caused the plan to fail or backfire. He'd have to be careful.

What was this plan, you ask? Well, Rune knew the premise of it, but how to carry it out varied drastically between scenarios. Essentially, the Irken government was entirely height-based, and Rune was very short, you see. One of the shortest, possibly even THE shortest Irken ever to exist. However, his plan wasn't specifically for himself to have more rights. The law was unjust, and he would have formulated this plan even if he were the Tallest. In fact, he wished he were, so that this plan could be carried out instantly, rather than going through with a ridiculous rebellion scheme that was almost totally doomed to failure.

"Then what of the school system?" you might be asking. "If it's entirely based on height, what's the purpose of the schools?" Well, the taller Irkens still had to be educated to do any jobs properly. They got the classes that would direct them to more difficult but much, much, MUCH higher paying jobs and didn't have a choice on which classes to take. In that last respect were the shorter and taller Irkens similar: no choice.

The shorter Irkens were forced into classes that essentially taught basic, common knowledge, or more specialized knowledge in such daring fields of work as cleaning bathrooms. It was impossible for a short Irken to get a job worth anything. This was why Rune took it upon himself to solve these issues.

But he had twenty-four days of thinking to go, and in those twenty-four days, he would have to get a better team than merely Thal and Chak. Only three out of seventy-six scenarios so far succeeded with just the three of them. And those, as even a minuscule Irken could see, were not good odds.


End file.
